How Hammer of the Gods Should Have Ended
by ROSSELLA1
Summary: Exactly what the title says. Spoilers up until said episode and blatant disregard for the rest of the series.
1. Chapter 1

Ch. 1

By ROSSELLA1

Note: I do not own Supernatural or any of its characters. Oh, and this takes place sometime between the car scene and the part where Lucifer shows up.

"You want to what?" Dean snapped at the archangel in front of them.

"What," Sam scoffed, "you want me to let you possess me so that when your brother gets here you can give me to him as a birthday present?"

"Please!" Gabriel rolled his eyes. "Lucifer's birthday's not for another three months. Anyway, that wouldn't work. You can only have one angel in you at once, boys. Even if I said 'yes', I'd have to leave before he got inside and you'd still have time to say 'no'."

"So, what? You just hand Sam over to Lucifer and let him torture Sam into saying yes? Not happening!"

"Nooo. Sam says 'yes' to me and I kick Lucifer's ass. Since I'll be inside Sam, Lucifer wouldn't dare try to hurt me."

"How do we know we can trust you?" Dean replied.

"Kali's got my blood, too." Gabriel said, gritting his teeth and looking away, as if even admitting it was causing him pain. "I can't leave."

"How do we know you're not just waiting for big brother to show up and set you free?" Sam scoffed.

"Because I promise you I'm not."

"Oh, and you always keep your promises?" Dean asked.

"I have to." Gabriel sighed, giving a grimace. "It's an angel thing. We make a promise, we need to keep it. You don't believe me, ask Cas."

"Well, conveniently for you, he's gone AWOL!" Dean snapped

The archangel's eyes narrowed. "Since when?"

"Since he painted a sigil on his chest and banished himself and the other guard angels to help us get back our brother!" The older Winchester's voice rose to a shout.

"Well, how was I supposed to know?" Gabriel cried out, tossing his hands up in the air. "I've got better things to do than to sit around and babysit you three knuckleheads!" He shook his head. "Damnit! I knew I should have gotten him away from you guys when I had a chance. Okay, okay, just give me a moment. "Gabriel took a deep breath and closed his eyes.

Sam and Dean glanced at each other. "Uh, Ga-"

"Shh!" Gabriel waved a hand in Sam's direction. Shrugging the Winchesters sat down on the couch to wait. About a minute went by, then Castiel was suddenly lying unconscious on the bed.

"Cas!" Dean rose to go to his angel's side, but Gabriel wove a hand and Dean found himself shoved back onto the couch.

"Ah, ah, ah! Let me heal him before you mess him up again." The archangel snapped, approaching the bed. Placing his hand on Castiel's head, Gabriel muttered something and a light encompassed Castiel and the archangel. With a gasp, Castiel's eyes flew open and the light faded. "There. Not quite as good as new, but that'll keep you going for a while."

"Gabriel?" Castiel asked, sitting up.

"Yup! Don't worry, you can think of some way to thank me later. I'm thinking a chocolate factory with a chocolate river and a bunch of orange guys, but that's just a suggestion."

"Cas?" Dean spoke up. "You alright."

Castiel gave a disbelieving chuckle. "Yes, I-I'm better than alright. I…I have my grace back!"

"Not all of it." Gabriel pointed out. "To do that, I'd need to talk with Michael and Raphael. That's just to keep you going in the meantime. Now," Gabriel clapped his hands together, "back to business. Will you please explain to your boyfriend and his brother that I can't renege on a promise?"

Castiel narrowed his eyes. "It's true that angels must keep their promises-"

"There! You see?" Gabriel interrupted.

"But you need to pay very close attention to the wording. What exactly has Gabriel promised to do?"

Dean quickly told him about the archangel's plan. "It's crazy, right?"

"Actually…" Castiel replied slowly. "It would probably work. The most difficult part would be getting close enough to Lucifer to kill him." He said, glancing at Gabriel. "He wouldn't be able to harm Gabriel if he was in Sam's body, but he could still dodge them. However, if Gabriel succeeded in getting close enough to use his blade, then the plan would work."

"You see?" Gabriel said, gesturing at himself. "I'm a genius. Even Cas says so. Now, let's get this show on the road!" The archangel took a step towards Sam, but was quickly blocked by Dean.

"Woah, woah, woah! Not so fast! I want Cas to hear you promise before we agree to anything."

"Don't I get a say in this?" Sam spoke up. "I mean, it's my body you want to wear."

"Of course you do, Sammy." Gabriel gave the younger Winchester a benevolent smile. "You can accept this plan and my help, or you can be hounded by angels and demons for the rest of your life or until you find a way to defeat my brother without my help. Take your time. I know that it's going to be hard to choose."

"Look, Sammy." Dean added. "I don't like this either, but…" He gave a small, humorless, chuckle. "what else can we really do? I mean, the Colt didn't work. I want to believe we can ice the Devil on our own but I gotta tell you…I'm getting sort of worried here. This might be our best shot."

Sam sighed and gave Gabriel his patented bitch-face. "Alright. I'll do it. But I want you to promise that you'll help us avert the Apocalypse, give me back my body after you've taken Lucifer down, and that you will not harm anyone on Team Free Will."

"I promise. We cool?" Gabriel replied. Sam glanced at Castiel.

"I would prefer if you said exactly what you are promising." Castiel told Gabriel.

"You don't trust me?" Gabriel replied, with a wounded look.

"I am sorry, brother." Castiel replied. "But you have not been supportive of our cause in the past and it is necessary to be completely certain."

Gabriel rolled his eyes, placed a hand over his heart, and raised the other one. "Alright. I, Gabriel, an archangel of the Lord, also known as Loki, the Trickster, the Pepsi-Max guy, and the Horny Hungarian, solemnly swear that I will help Team Free Will avert the Apocalypse, without harming any of them, and that, after I have defeated Lucifer, I will give Sam his body back." He glanced at Castiel. "Good enough for you?"

"Yes."

"Alright!" Gabriel clapped his hands together. "You ready for me to ride your ass, Sammy?" He , asked waggling his eyebrows.

Sam snorted. "Just tell me what I have to do."

"Just say 'Gabriel, I want you to ride me.'"

Sam stared at him. "You've got to be kidding me."

"Nope!"

"Actually," Castiel spoke up, "you just need to say 'Yes'. I don't know why Gabriel is lying to you."

"Oh, come on!" Gabriel pouted. "Can't a guy have a little fun?"

"Yes." Sam said.

"See! Sam agrees with me!"

"I believe he was referring to-" Castiel started.

"Yeah, yeah, I know." Gabriel rolled his eyes. "You ready, Sam?"  
"Not really... but does that really matter?"

"Nope!" Gabriel said, approaching Sam and placing a hand on his shoulder. "But don't worry." He winked. "I'll be gentle. Dean?" The archangel glanced at the older Winchester. "You might want to cover your eyes."

"Why?"

"Just trust me."

Dean looked as if he wasn't sure that was a good idea, but Castiel nodded his agreement. Dean did as Gabriel had asked. A moment later, he could see light shining through his eyelids.

"You can open your eyes." Sam's voice said, after the light had died down.

Dean opened his eyes to see that the only thing that had changed in the room was that Gabriel's vessel was lying on the floor, unconscious. "Sammy?" He asked, turning to his brother.

"Don't worry, Deano." Sam's voice said. "Your baby bro's still in here. You guys are too much fun to ruin." Sam's body bent down and touched Gabriel's former vessel's forehead. The was a small flash of light and then…nothing. "Just preserving him." Sam's voice explained. "He's an old vessel, but I've gotten attached. Don't want him dying before I can get back to him."

"Okay." Dean replied, trying to keep his voice steady. Hearing someone else speak with Sam's voice was unnerving. "So, now what do we do."

"Well, you and my baby brother are going to round up to snag our blood, round up the pagan gods, and get them out of here. If I know them, and I do, the moment my big bro shows up, they'll go and get themselves killed." Sam's eyes rolled. "Meanwhile," he sighed, "Sammy and I are going to go summon the Devil."


	2. Chapter 2

Ch. 2

By ROSSELLA1

Note: I do not own Supernatural or any of its characters. Oh, and parts of Lucifer and Gabriel's conversation is taken from the episode.

It was the strangest sensation Sam had ever felt. He had been possessed before, but this wasn't like that. Or, it was, but to a lesser degree. He was in his body and he could watch on as Gabriel used it. He could also still think, in order to communicate with Gabriel. However, unlike being possessed by a demon, he could hear Gabriel's thoughts. Even when the archangel tried to shield them, Sam could still get a vague sense of the feelings behind them. Also, if he _really_ tried, he could move a bit. Not that there was much reason to; when Sam felt the slightest desire to scratch an itch or sit down, Gabriel did it without Sam having to ask.

'Yup.' Gabriel thought. 'You're welcome.'

Sam mentally snorted. 'I didn't thank you.'

'You were going to, though.'

Normally, Sam would have snapped back with a witty retort, but being in the same body as Gabriel allowed him to realize that beneath the archangel's seemingly lighthearted comments lurked a seriousness that Sam wouldn't have thought possible. Gabriel understood that this situation, not being in control, was difficult for Sam, and he was doing everything he could to set the human at ease.

'Can we stop profiling me?' Gabriel thought, not bothering to hide his irritation. 'One 'thank you' is enough.'

'Sorry.' Sam replied, and they lapsed into silence.

Currently, they were in the supply closet, but, at the same time, they were out by the front desk, waiting inside a miniscule circle of holy fire for the Devil to arrive. Or at least a copy of one was. It was like nothing Sam had ever felt before. He was capable of thinking in his body, but could still think for the copy. He could also see through the copy's eyes, while at the same time see through his body's.

'If we're going to get close enough to get Lucifer to do what we want, we're going to have to distract him.' Gabriel had explained five minutes ago, when they had left Dean and Castiel and made their way to the front lobby. 'Best way to do that is to get him to think we're somewhere we're not.'

'You're sure the whole 'he's behind you' trick is gonna work?' Sam asked for what was probably the fourth time.

Like before, Gabriel sighed. 'Trust me, Sam. I know what I'm doing.'

Sam could tell that Gabriel's plan was slightly more involved than what the archangel had told Sam, but Gabriel was shielding it from the human. This worried Sam, slightly, but Gabriel _had_ promised to help them, and he couldn't detect any feelings of ill-will towards Team Free Will. Anyway, there was nothing Sam could do about it now

'You keep saying that, but Lucifer hasn't even shown up yet. What if he-'

'Again, it takes a bit of-' There was the sound of a door opening. 'Speak of the Devil! Now, I'm going to need to concentrate, so try to keep quiet'.

"Sam!" Lucifer greeted the copy. "This is a bit unexpected. I didn't expect you to come to your senses for another month or so."

"He hasn't." Gabriel had the copy reply with a smile. Lifting a hand, the copy waggled its fingers. "Hi, Luci. Miss me?"

"Gabriel!" Lucifer's eyes widened in surprise. "Well, I must say, I also didn't expect to see you here. I thought you were in hiding."

"Oh, I was." Gabriel had the copy say, making it lounge against the front desk. "But I figured it was finally time to pick a side."

"And you picked me? I'm flattered, but not-"

"Actually, no."

There was a flash of hurt in Lucifer's eyes. "If Mi-"

"Wrong again." The copy sighed. "I'm choosing the humans."

"Why?" Sam was surprised to see that there was still no anger, just hurt and confusion. He wondered if that was just a show or if Lucifer genuinely felt betrayed by Gabriel's choice. "They're flawed! I mean, Michael I could understand! But you're choosing those abortions over your own family?"

"You're wrong." Gabriel replied quietly. "We're the ones who are flawed. You and Michael, you two used to love each other! Now you're willing to kill each other-"

"If Father-"

"IT'S NOT FATHER'S FAULT!" Gabriel's voice raised to a shout. "I'M NOT SAYING I UNDERSTAND HIS CHOICES, BUT YOU'RE THE ONE WHO TURNED HIS BACK ON OUR FAMILY! DAD LOVED YOU! WE ALL DID! YOU WERE THE GOLDEN CHILD! THE MORNING STAR! THE MOST BEAUTIFUL ANGEL IN HEAVEN! BUT THEN DAD BROUGHT HOME THE NEW BABY AND YOU JUST COULDN'T TAKE IT SO YOU DECIDED TO BREAK ALL DAD'S TOYS-

"THAT'S-"

"THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT HAPPENED!" Gabriel didn't give Lucifer a chance to finish. "THEN MICHAEL! HE CAST YOU OUT! I COULD UNDERSTAND THAT, WHAT WITH THE WAY YOU WERE ACTING, BUT THEN HE JUST LEFT YOU THERE FOREVER! DIDN'T EVEN GIVE YOU A CHANCE TO REPENT! AND RAPH! RAPH JUST WENT ALONG WITH IT! HELL, EVEN I CHICKENED OUT AND RAN AWAY INSTEAD OF TRYING TO FIX THINGS! BUT HUMANS! HUMANS ARE THE ONES WHO ARE TRYING TO FIX OUR MISTAKES! THEY MAY SCREW UP, BUT AT LEAST THEY KEEP GETTING BACK UP AGAIN, WHICH IS MORE THAN I CAN SAY FOR US!" Sam was caught between feeling awkward at intruding on this family feud and wanting to comfort Gabriel; he could relate to being in a dysfunctional family. But he remembered what Gabriel had said about needing to concentrate, so he kept quiet. Gabriel opened the copy's mouth to speak again, but then closed it.

"I'm sorry we've caused you pain, brother." Lucifer replied quietly. "But it was unavoid-"

"No, Lucifer." Gabriel had the copy say. "It wasn't. You always had a choice and you chose to betray us." The copy shook its head. "But it's not too late to make things right." Lucifer opened his mouth , but the copy continued. "No, listen to me. I want you to swear that you won't harm Sam, Dean, Castiel, Michael, or any of my friends and our family. I want you to promise that you won't cause the Apocalypse, and that you'll repent and come home." Now, Sam could see what Gabriel's plan was, and he started to squirm, trying to tell the archangel that it wouldn't work. But, Gabriel didn't pay attention to him.

Lucifer sighed. "I can't do that, Gabriel. Michael won't let me. And it's too late to repent.

"It's never too late." Gabriel had the copy say. "We can talk to Michael together. He doesn't have a vessel, yet, and if you don't have Sam, it won't happen."

"I'm so-"

"DON'T SAY THAT!" Gabriel had the copy hiss. "JUST PROMISE ME!"

"No." Lucifer answered firmly.

Gabriel seemed to deflate, Sam's shoulders bending, head bowing. The copy did these actions as well.

'I'm sorry.' Sam whispered, but Gabriel didn't answer.

"Now," Lucifer took a step forward, but Gabriel had the copy raise his sword. Lucifer held his hand up, "I'm not going to hurt you. I can't." The Devil placated. "But I need you to leave Sam. He and I need to talk."

Gabriel had the copy give a vindictive smirk. "No can do, bro. Promised I'd help stop you and if I left him you could find a way to make him say 'yes'."

Lucifer frowned. "I know you think you're doing the right thing, but this is just drawing the pain out for everyone. The Apocalypse is not ideal, but you need to let things take their course."

"You're not listening." Gabriel had the copy sneer. "I _promised_."

Lucifer's eyes widened. "What, you mean you actually promised? Like you said 'I promise'?"

"Yup!" The copy replied cheerfully, a smile on its face. "Meaning that, unless Father decides to show up and order me to do otherwise, I can't break it!"

"WHY THE FUCK WOULD YOU-" Lucifer hissed, before taking a deep breath. "Okay, you promised to help them. Did you promise to stay inside Sam until it was over?"

"Nope!" Gabriel had the copy reply. "But don't get too excited; I like riding his a- ouch!" He yelped, as Sam used all his energy to slap his and the copy's hand against the copy and Sam's foreheads. 'What? I was referring to using you as a vessel!' Gabriel thought, indignantly.

'I can hear your thoughts, remember?' Sam snapped back.

Gabriel had the copy shrugged. "Anyway, I'm sticking this out until you promise not to end the world."

"This is ridiculous." Lucifer scowled. "He's my vessel! Get out of him!" He took a step forward. Almost there.

"Come on, Luci! Don't you remember how to share?" Gabriel had the copy say.

"Gabriel, think about this. I'm more powerful than you. You _can't_ _defeat_ me."

"And you can't hurt me."

"I don't need to." Lucifer replied. "Brother. Michael won't like this either. But he won't have a reason not to hurt Sam. He won't want to hurt you either, but you know how dedicated he is to Dad's plan. If he wants to get you out of Sam, he will. Sam will end up as my vessel anyway, and you'll end up in the cage."

Gabriel let the copy's face betray just a hint of doubt. "Unless you help me avert this. Then-"

"It's not going to happen that way. It's too late for that."

"It wouldn't be if you'd just listen!" Gabriel had the copy plead, tears starting to come to the copy's (and Sam's) eyes.

"It's Michael that won't listen."

"If you'd-"

"BROTHER!" Lucifer shouted, then sighed. "I'm sorry. I am. But, we can never be a family again. Not like we used to."

Now the tears were streaming. "But…"

"I know." Lucifer whispered. "I wish it could be done, too. And if Michael agrees not to fight, then I'll accept that and we can try to rebuild. But you know how Michael is. I just don't want you to get your hopes up."

"I just want to be a family again." Gabriel and the copy whispered.

Lucifer gave a sad grin. "I know. And I promise, that I'll try to talk Michael out of it. But I can't promise you anything." Lucifer took a step forward, reaching out to his brother, and that was when Gabriel snapped. Fire lit up the ring. Sighing, Lucifer looked down, and then turned around. "Okay!" He shouted. "You tricked me. Now come out!"

Gabriel gave another snap and a ring of copies surrounded the ring of holy fire. Gabriel and Sam took their place among them.

Lucifer glanced up, startled. "Nice!" He said. "When I left, you'd only gotten to three."

"That was a long time ago." The copies replied. Gabriel snapped, and they all took a step forward. "Now, Lucifer. Looks like I have you right where I want you. So, why don't you make it easy on yourself and promise?"

The Devil gave a defiant look around, trying to find the true Gabriel. "Never. Sooner or later, the fire will burn down. After all," Lucifer shrugged, "you can't reach across it. Then, I'll take you and Sammy boy somewhere _you _can't escape from. "

"And then?"

"And then we wait it out on my terms. I can wait a lot longer than you can, _little_ brother. Patience was never your strong point."

"I'm not so little anymore." Gabriel said, with a confidence that Sam hoped was well-earned.

"We'll see." Lucifer shrugged.

"Luci," Gabriel begged, "please reconsider. I don't want to hurt you."

"As if you ever could." The Devil smirked.

Gabriel heaved a sigh. Sam could feel the guilt coursing through the archangel. But Gabriel was still going to go through with the plan. Gabriel's plan at least. "I'm sorry, Brother." Gabriel whispered, and lifted his sword from his side. Lucifer tried to block it, but couldn't find the real Gabriel. The sword plunged over the ring of holy fire and into Lucifer's shoulder.

"AHHH!" The Devil gave a cry of raw pain, one that was louder than anything Sam had ever heard, and dropped to his knees.

Sam was sure that Gabriel must have decided to go for the kill; surely no one could make that sound and still be alive.

'Just a flesh wound.' Gabriel addressed Sam, grimly. 'I'd need to pierce his heart or throat for him to die. But it'll hurt like Hell and won't heal on its own.'

"Promise!" Gabriel said aloud.

"You…ah…you…stabbed…me!" Lucifer looked up at his brother in disbelief.

"Like you wouldn't have killed me if I hadn't been inside Sam?" Gabriel seethed, anger showing through the guilt.

"I…thought…" Lucifer hissed "…ah…you were…all…about…fami…" He trailed off.

"I am." Gabriel whispered. "This is for your own good. Now, would you just promise so I can heal it?"

Lucifer shook his head. "Can't…Mike'll try…to…to kill…me. Need to…to be…ah…able to….fight…"

"We'll deal with Michael." Gabriel assured. "I'll talk to him inside Dean." Sam wasn't sure how Dean would feel about this, but figured that now wasn't the time to speak up.

"He…"

"If you don't promise, do you really think he'll heal you just so he can beat you up again? Or do you think he'll take advantage of the fact that you're injured?" Lucifer was silent, although Sam couldn't be sure that wasn't because of the blade. "You promise to help us, I'll heal you and protect you against Mike. He won't be able to hurt me inside Dean."

"Promise?" Lucifer asked in a weakened voice.

"Of course."

"Ah…alright."

"Good. Now, repeat after me: I, Lucifer, a former archangel of the Lord, also known as the Devil, the Morningstar, etc, etc, promise not to bring about the Apocalypse. Furthermore, I will only harm my family and their friends in self-defense, and even then, never fatally. I will cooperate with Dean, Sam, Gabriel, Castiel, Bobby, and all the other members of Team Free Will. I will not attempt to use any Winchester as a vessel and I repent of my evil ways and will return to Heaven."

Lucifer stumbled through the promise and broke off gasping. "There…now…heal…"

"Just a moment." Gabriel comforted, pulling the sword out. He snapped his fingers and a bag of soil appeared. The archangel quickly poured it on the flames and reached through to touch his brother's wound. Gabriel muttered something in Enochian, a light enveloped the two of them, and then the wound was gone.

Lucifer rose slowly to his feet. "Well…I'm not going to thank you."

"You will eventually." Gabriel said, cheerfully. "It's gonna take a while, but now we can be a family again. Not like we were, but still."

Lucifer looked doubtful. "So, now what do we do?"

"Hold up." Gabriel gave a snap, and suddenly Sam was alone in his body.

"Uh, Hi…" Sam greeted the Devil.

Lucifer gave him a nod, his interest in Sam clearly diminished now that he couldn't wear him to prom.

"Okay!" Gabriel appeared in his usual vessel. "Now, we go find Dean and Cas! You'll like Cas, Luci." Gabriel said in a confidential tone. "He's a lot like Mike, only he doesn't have as big of a stick up his ass." Turning to Sam, Gabriel continued. "Luce and Mike used to be the best of friends."

"Before he-"

"Before you went psycho and before he cast you out of Heaven." Gabriel finished. "You've both done some bad things. Now, let's find Dean and Cas, go talk to Michael, and then you two can hug and make up like _brothers_." Gabriel placed a hand on Sam's shoulder and one on Lucifer. The surroundings seemed to blur, and then they were in the back of the Impala.

"SHIT!" Dean screeched, slamming on the breaks. "GIVE A GUY SOME WARNING!" He turned and saw Lucifer. "What the Hell's he doing here?" He turned to Castiel. "I thought you said Gabriel couldn't-"

"I can't." Gabriel confirmed. "I promised I'd help you avert the Apocalypse and defeat Lucifer and I did. I made _Lucifer_ promise not to possess Sammy, not to hurt any of us, and to not cause the Apocalypse."

"Why couldn't you just kill him?"

"What? Like you'd kill Sam?" Gabriel asked, pointedly.

Dean glanced away. "Completely different situation." He made a K-turn. "Guess we don't need to go back for anything." He shrugged. The next minute was spent in silence. Lucifer stared out the window, sullenly, as if determined not to enjoy any part of being on Team Free Will, while Gabriel spent his time poking Castiel, then turning away when Cas turned to give him a confused look. Finally, Dean spoke up again. "Hey, Sammy?" He smirked.

"Yeah?"

"What's it like have Gabriel inside of you?"

Now it was Sam's turn to smirk. "Don't worry. You'll find out soon enough."


	3. Chapter 3

Ch. 3

By ROSSELLA1

Note: I do not own Supernatural or any of its characters. 

'_You're sure this'll work_?' Dean thought.

'_No._' Gabriel snarked back. '_I was bored and thought screwing with you guys would be fun.'_

'_Wouldn't be the first time.' _

_'Hey, the first time I was just minding my own business and you guys came into town-'_

'_You_ _killed a-'_

_ 'The second time I was trying to help Sam deal.'_

'_By killing me repeatedly and making him watch!'_

_ 'Meh, details. The third time was to move things along.'_

'_You kidnapped-'_

_ 'The point is that-'_

"Dean?" A voice that managed to sound caring, authoritative, and pompous all at once sounded, and Gabriel turned Dean around.

It was odd looking through his own eyes but having someone else control them. But, sometimes you had to take one for the team, and Dean wasn't about to let Sam and Gabriel get all the credit for saving the world. A man who looked suspiciously like a grown up version of Ponyboy was standing in front of the church doors (Gabriel had insisted that Michael being surrounded by holy relics would make him less suspicious of the presence of holy oil).

"Sorry, bro." Gabriel smirked. "Guess again."

"Gabriel…" The head archangel breathed, stumbling back, needing to rest against a pew for support.

"In the flesh!"

'_Thought he was supposed to be a big, tough archangel?'_

'_Shove it, Winchester!' _Gabriel hissed at him, bringing a flashback of the Mystery Spot up for Dean to see.

Dean thought that he deserved a little vindictiveness, seeing how Michael had made their lives a living Hell, but shut up. It wasn't that Gabriel scared him; there were just more important things at hand, Dean told himself.

"But…we…that is… you're dead!" Well, Dean reluctantly allowed, maybe Mike had an excuse.

"Nope." Dean was surprised to sense genuine guilt behind Gabriel's glib tone. "Just on vacation." The angel opened Dean's arms. "Come on. Let's hug it out."

'_Hey-'_ Before Dean could finish his warning, Michael was across the room, wrapping them in an embrace that would have been bone-crushing if Gabriel hadn't been an angel.

"I thought I'd lost you, too." Michael whispered.

"I know." Gabriel replied quietly.

The eldest archangel drew back with a frown. "And you let us think-"

"Don't start that!" Gabriel cut him off. "I left because I couldn't take the fighting. I haven't been back for the same reason."

"So, like a coward you ran away?"

"I'll admit. I was a coward. I shouldn't have run away. I'm sorry."

Michael's face cleared. "You are forgiven, of course. But you must prove your repentance with works. I take it that you are friends with Dean?"

"We're on the same side." Gabriel replied, guardedly.

'_I guess you could say we are.'_ Dean could see enough of Gabriel's mind to realize that the archangel didn't have any friends. Dean didn't either, so he figured they could maybe be each other's kinda-sorta-friendish person.

"Good. I need to you to convince him to be my vessel. It is our-"

"Actually, Mike," Gabriel interrupted, "I came to tell you that there's no need for that; The Apocalypse has been cancelled."

Michael's brow furrowed. "Our Father has been in contact with you? What-"

"Not exactly." The youngest archangel said. "I talked to Lucifer. It took some persuasion, but he promised to never hurt any of our family except in self-defense and never to kill us, to never use any Winchester as a vessel, and to cooperate with us (Team Free Will, I mean). So, you can't have the Apocalypse!"

"But Father-"

"If Dad objects, I'm sure He'll find a way around it. He's God, after all. He can change the rules if He wants." Gabriel paused and Dean felt uncertainty coursing through the archangel. "Do you _want_ to kill Lucifer?"

"Of course not!" Michael denied, vehemently. "It's just…I thought…Dad said-"

"Again," Gabriel replied firmly, "if Dad wants the Apocalypse, He'll find away. Until then, can't we at least _try_ to be a family again?"

Michael smile. "Of course."

"Great." Gabriel replied. Suddenly, Dean was in control again and Gabriel, in his usual vessel, came bounding out of one of the pews. "Now. Let's call Sam, Cas, and Luci and go home." He turned to Michael. "We need to celebrate. Have you tried pizza yet?"

"Angels have no need to-"

"Blah, blah, blah!" Gabriel threw an arm around Michael's shoulders. "You need to try it!" He started to lead his brother out of the church. "I'm thinking we do a 'round the world theme. Get the best of everything. There're-"

"Wait!" Dean spoke up, causing the archangels to glance back. "That's it?"

"Of course!" Gabriel scoffed.

"Why fight to the death if there's a way to avoid it?" Michael added.

Dean shrugged. "Works for me." And the three left the church.


End file.
